Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Nectarine Strudel

Growing up summer always involved picking fruit from our nectarine tree. There was that change in the air when suddenly it was thick with the scent of ripe fruit.

This would be the sign for my mother to start climbing the tree - physically. As a child in Italy, much to the dismay of her mother, she would find her way to the highest points. Summer and our nectarine tree was a perfect opportunity to revisit those childhood habits. Watching from the safety of the ground, aprons extended to catch the fruit, I was amazed at her ability to scamper onto the thinnest of branches.

While I wasn't as brave as her, you'd find me on the relative safety of the roof of our shed plucking nectarines from the overhanging branches. When you found the perfect one, it was also the perfect spot to indulge in that sun-warmed fruit.

These days I have to satisfy myself with store-bought nectarines and regardless of their origin they just don't taste the same. So I've come up with this quick and super easy strudel - it is basically sliced fresh nectarines encased in filo pastry. As it bakes in the oven the fruit softens slightly and seems to intensify its flavour - when eaten warm, it's almost like I'm back eating those nectarines straight from the tree.

With the home made sheets of filo I'm using, one sheet is enough for this recipe. If you are using regular filo you will need to use multiple sheets - brushing with melted butter between each sheet.

Brush the sheet with melted butter and sprinkle over with caster sugar. Arrange the nectarine slices to form a rectangle near the base of the sheet.

Fold the pastry over to just cover the nectarines and brush with a little more butter and give it a light sprinkle of sugar. Roll this buttered side over and then brush again with butter, fold the sides of the pastry in towards the centre, butter it well and continue to roll.

When finished place seam side down on a baking tray, brush with butter and give it another sprinkle of sugar.

Bake in a preheated 180°C/350°F until the pastry is golden and cooked through.

Cool on a wire rack and serve warm or cold.

If you don't have fresh nectarines, then try canned peaches/nectarines but make sure they are well drained - you might like to sprinkle the pastry where they sit with a little almond meal to help soak up any juices.